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Narada Bhakti Sutras
the heart and soul of the path of spiritual devotion
Intro
Chapter I - The value of Devotion
Chapter II - Defining Bhakti
Chapter III - The means of Achievement
Chapter IV - Pure and Mixed Devotion
Chapter V - Attaining Perfection
chapter I - sutra 4
yal labdhva puman siddho bhavaty amrito bhavati tripto bhavati
On attaining this supreme love, man becomes perfect, immortal and satisfied.
The first twe words remind us of Lord Krishna's thrilling utterance the Gita:
yam labdhwa cha-aparam labham manyate na adhikam tatah
yasmin stitho na dukhena gurunaapi vichalyate
In the Gita it is called 'dukhena gurunaapi yogam' - the yoga who prevents misery. Here, Narada calls it bhakti. Yagnavalkya declares that only jnana can make us immortal. The faciklity with which these words 'bhakti', 'yoga' and 'jnana' are interchanged and used in the same sense only confirms Gurudev Sivananda's argument that they are in essence one and the same.
But what is of special significance here is that Narada equates bhakti with God Himself. It is not as though man cultivates bhakti, realises God, and that God or God-realisation liberates him and makes him immortal. The attainment of Bhakti itself is the liberator, according to Narada. Bhakti itself is the goal. Hence it was defined as 'Amritam'. It is further confirmed in this sutra.
'Siddho bhavati' - that which is attained by sadhana is siddhi. It is perfection, not just psychic power. It is true that even a bhakta, during the course of his upasana, gets siddhis, unasked. Mantra japa bestows siddhis on him. But he considers them obstacles and does not consciously make any use of them. Moreover, he is a man of prayer who has the well-being of all at heart. He does not interfere with the course of events, nor with the working of the Lord's Will. Therefore, siddhi in this sutra refers only to spiritual perfection. The bhakta has detached himself from the imperfect body and finite mind; he has given up the ego, which is the root of all imperfection. Through self-surrender, he has established unity with the Lord. That is highest devotion. He is no more. The Lord is all-in-all. The Lord is perfect. So, the bhakta has attained perfection.
'Siddhi' reminds us of Lord Krishna's beautiful utterance in the Gita. Lord Krishna has been extolled in the Bhagavata and the Mahabharata, as well as by various great saints, in their compositions - like the Narayaneeyam, Krishna Leela Tarangini - as an Incarnation of God, Statesman, Musician, Dancer, etc. In the Gita, He reveals Himself as a Supreme Artist. Look at the picture he has painted for us:
svakarmana tamabhyarchiya siddhim vindati manavah
That man who worships Him, with his actions, attains to perfection.
At once the picture appears to your mind's eye. There is a true devotee of the Lord. He perceives the Lord in all beings - aham atma gudakesah sarvabhutasya sthi thah. Him he worships. With what flowers? With every one of his daily actions as the flowers. Thus, he attains siddhi or perfection. What doubt is there that he will quickly get cosmic consciousness if he keeps up this attitude throughout the day and night? This therefore is the yoga that Gurudev Sivananda extols as practical vedanta, dynamic yoga.
Only this will lead us to consummate perfection.
yo vai bhuma tat sukham, na alpe sukham asti
The Infinite alone is Bliss which is absent in finite objects.
declare the Upanishads. And, this is one of the most favourite mantras of Gurudev Sivananda. Bhuma is perfection. What is bhuma?
yatra na anyat pasyati, na anyat srunoti
Where one sees nothing else, hears nothing else, etc.
In other words, where one sees everything as the Self, and the Self as this all. Such a state can be attained only by one who sees and serves the Lord in all,
'Amrito bhavati' - since the nature of bhakti is itself amritam - vide previous sutra, the natural result of getting established in it, is the attainment of immortality. We have. Lord Krishna's own grandest assurance in the Gita:
na me bhakthah pranasyati
My devotee does not perish.
Not only does He grant us this immortality, but He also assures us that
ananyaschintayanto mam ye janah paryupasate
tesham nityabhiyuktaanaam yogakshemam vahamyaham
I attend to the welfare of all My devotees who constantly think of Me.
We have numerous instances in the lives of bhaktas where the Lord has taken on the devotees' duties upon Himself. When a North Indian saint who was working as a school-master was absent from his post of duty - as he was engaged in bhajan and kirtan, the Lord went to the school in the disguise of the devotee and did his work! When the devotee was shown his signature in the register, he was deeply moved; and he renounced the world that very instant. Such stories are current everywhere in this country, and are too numerous to mention here. Suffice it to say that the moment we take one step towards Him, He runs forward to greet us. May we deserve His Grace!
'Tripto bhavati' - bhakti fills the heart with bliss and peace. He who has tasted the bliss of bhakti, does not long for anything else, as we have already seen. Therefore, there is permanent satisfaction in the bhakta's heart. Desires do not arise in it at all; on the contrary, they find their fulfilment in it. Once again, Lord Krishna's divine art paints a beautiful and inspiring picture for us
aapwyamanam achala pratishtham samudram apah pravisanti yadvat
tadvat kamah yam pravisanti sarve sa santim aapnoti na kama kaamee
There is the huge ocean - the ocean of the bliss of bhakti. It is all peace. Countless rivers flow into it - the rivers are the desires. They enter the ocean and disappear; and the ocean is not disturbed thereby. The evil element that disturbs the heart of an ordinary worldly man viz, desire, has no power to disturb the heart of a devotee. He has already realised the Bliss in his own heart. Desires do not arise in it, but they get dissolved in it. Hence, in the language of the Updnishads, the devotee is 'aptakamah'.
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